Knife-wielding man tries, fails to rob Mr. Hero

ELYRIA — A man armed with a large folding knife was in the process of robbing a Lake Avenue fast-food restaurant Friday evening when he was apparently frightened off by the appearance of another customer.

The incident occurred at 5:50 p.m. when a man walked into the Mr. Hero at 1227 Lake Ave., placed his jacket on the counter and ordered food as another customer walked in.

When the manager told the first man what his bill was, the customer stuttered before telling the manager his girlfriend was feeding the couple’s baby and would be in shortly to pay him.

The man took a seat in the corner until the woman arrived, at which point the man returned to the counter with his hands wrapped in his jacket and demanded his food order, police said.

The man nodded down to his hand which held a large black folding knife sticking out from beneath the jacket.

When the manager said he would call police, the would-be robber took his jacket and left as another customer entered.

The suspect was described as a clean-shaven white man in his mid 20s wearing a black hat, long sleeve white T-shirt, dark jeans, brown or dark grey shoes and holding a black jacket.